Chapter 428: Cult of the Cadaver

Chapter 428: Cult of the Cadaver

Watching as the bandits and foreign tourists were escorted into police cars, Liu Xing spoke up, "Looks like today’s affair has come to an end. We can prepare to head back for dinner now. Honestly, I’m exhausted, famished, and sleepy. After dinner, I’m going straight to bed to adjust my jet lag."

Zhang Jingxu chuckled and said, "I’m feeling the same way. Liu Xing, could you give Chris a call and let him know we’re leaving first? There’s nothing urgent for us here now anyway."

Yis People nodded, taking out their phone to make the call, but then they saw Chris approaching.

Yis People rolled down the car window and began conversing with Chris in English.

Meanwhile, Ling Ishikawa provided real-time translation to Liu Xing, "Liu Xing, Chris says that today’s case is just as we suspected. These bandits are all copycats, a group of mafia members who came over from Italy. They planned to kidnap these foreign tourists and then declare that they had kidnapped them before, demanding billions of dollars in ransom. Unfortunately, their plan failed this time."

Liu Xing nodded. It was as expected. Just like those lesser-known terrorist organizations, they often surfaced to claim responsibility for terrorist attacks to boost their organization’s status in the martial world.

Clearly, these bandits with mafia backgrounds also wanted to capitalize on the situation, but unfortunately, they were caught red-handed.

However, Liu Xing still had some doubts. These bandits seemed too cowardly. Despite being surrounded and their vehicles damaged, with their firepower and hostages, they had the opportunity to negotiate with the authorities. It didn’t make sense for them to surrender so easily.

Moreover, according to Chris’s earlier statement, these bandits had kidnapped these foreign tourists within the city. This showed how inflated their confidence was. But why did they capitulate so quickly?

So, with these thoughts in mind, Liu Xing voiced his doubts.

Furrowing her brows, Ling Ishikawa said, "Ryuusei, what you said makes sense. Something seems off about these bandits upon closer examination. Could this be a tactic to lure us away from the main plot? Chris seems to think so too. He wants us to investigate those two trucks now. He suspects these bandits haven’t been entirely truthful, as their motives and actions don’t add up."

Yis People nodded, turning to say, "You all heard Ling Ishikawa’s translation, right? Chris wants us to check out those two trucks now. He suspects these bandits haven’t been entirely honest, given their motives and behavior."

So, under Chris’s guidance, Liu Xing’s group first arrived at the rear of the trucks.

At that moment, police officers were opening the rear doors of the trucks.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, instinctively placing his hand on his holster. Because according to the classic tropes of certain cop or horror movies, this situation often led to an ambush upon opening.

However, Liu Xing was soon disappointed. There was no ambush upon opening. The rear compartments of the trucks were empty.

But within a second, a foul stench hit Liu Xing’s nostrils, making him feel nauseous.

Fortunately, whatever he had eaten on the plane earlier had already been digested; otherwise, Liu Xing felt he would have vomited on the spot.

Of course, Zhang Jingxu and the others were no better off. They quickly stepped away from the rear compartments of the trucks and began retching... except for Chris.

After drinking the bottle of mineral water handed to him by a nearby officer, Liu Xing finally caught his breath and looked at the rear compartment of that truck with confusion.

Because there was a huge logo on the truck’s body. Although Liu Xing couldn’t recognize the specific company the logo represented, he could tell from its style that it was likely a courier company, as the logo depicted a stick figure running with a box.

Liu Xing shrugged, shaking his head, "We don’t know. Now we can only rely on Chris and their police interrogation abilities. But I doubt they’ll get much out of them since the bandits won’t likely reveal too much information. And I suspect these expendables might have been hypnotized."

At this point, Yis People signaled for Liu Xing and the others to leave the rear compartment.

In the driver’s cabin of the truck, Liu Xing’s group found nothing. But in the rear compartment of the other truck, they found more scratches and several scales.

Picking up a scale, Liu Xing didn’t need inspiration to determine it was from a Deep One. These scales were identical to the ones he had seen in Fisher’s Village.

So, Liu Xing could confirm that this module was indeed related to Deep Ones.

After investigating both trucks, Yis People returned and, after a discussion with Liu Xing and the others, informed Chris that both Deep Ones and Ghouls were involved in the disappearance of the foreign tourists.

Chris furrowed his brows. After saying a few words to Yis People, he turned and left.

"Chris wants us to return and standby for now. Tomorrow, he’ll arrange for us to visit the scene of the incident again, and he’ll also request support from London," Yis People said.

Liu Xing raised an eyebrow, knowing for sure that the support coming from London would be Alice.

After all, according to the previous storyline theory, now was the perfect time to trigger the "Alice" storyline point.

Back in the car, Ling Ishikawa spoke up, "Ah, this module seems quite challenging. Our enemies not only include Ghouls but also Deep Ones. At least one leader-level mythical creature is involved."

Liu Xing nodded, somewhat helplessly saying, "What’s going on? Ghouls usually dwell underground, so how did they end up cooperating with Deep Ones, who lurk in the water?"

"I might know the reason," Yis People suddenly said.

Liu Xing and the others looked at Yis People simultaneously.

Yis People organized his thoughts and said, "Here’s the thing. In the last module, I encountered an England Wizard being pursued by Deep Ones. He told me about a secret cult in England preparing for something big. This Wizard was originally an undercover agent within that secret cult, sent to make contact with another secret cult. But he was discovered by members of another secret cult."

"So, this Wizard was being hunted down by both sides, and my team’s main quest was to ensure his safety. Amidst the fanatical pursuit by cultists and Deep Ones, we successfully escorted the Wizard to safety. But because the Wizard was critically injured from the start, we couldn’t extract much more information from him. However, from what we’re seeing now, I suspect the mastermind behind this disappearance of foreign tourists is the secret cult the Wizard mentioned, likely the Cult of the Cadaver."

Liu Xing nodded. In the Cthulhu RPG Game, among human-created churches based on belief in mythical creatures, the most cohesive one is probably the Cult of the Cadaver.

Due to the origins and doctrines of the Cult of the Cadaver, almost all Ghoul worshippers join the Cult of the Cadaver. And because there are many Ghouls in the upper echelons, no follower dares to establish their own sect. Therefore, the Cult of the Cadaver is virtually uncontested on its turf.

But if it’s indeed the Cult of the Cadaver, what could be their purpose in abducting so many foreign tourists?

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